


I Know Not Seems

by earthseed_fic



Category: Smallville
Genre: Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, Futurefic, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-02-28
Updated: 2003-02-28
Packaged: 2017-11-01 10:42:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/355748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earthseed_fic/pseuds/earthseed_fic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's about what Clark doesn't know.  For Alax's Shakespeare Title Challenge</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Know Not Seems

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my wonderful betas Cleo, who read even though she was sick, and Signe, who suffered through my writing angst. And who helped with the sex. _g_ Smooches. 

## I Know Not Seems

by earthseed

<http://www.livejournal.com/users/earthseed>

* * *

Author's 

Feedback: Is it too embarrassing to beg? Please. Pretty Please? 

* * *

"I Know Not Seems"

The cotton organdy drapes blew softly in the breeze as Lex pulled the bright red comforter tighter around him and snuggled closer to Clark. Clark sleepily wrapped his arm around Lex's waist and leaned into nuzzle his neck. 

Lex was glad he had convinced Clark to stay in. Lexcorp had beaten Luthorcorp to yet another major deal and the press was clamoring for some comment from either CEO. Camera crews had been camped out at Lexcorp and a newspaper reporter had managed to get up to the penthouse. He wasn't ready yet to answer questions about future Lexcorp plans and he certainly wasn't ready to answer questions about Clark. Which is exactly what would have happened if they had gone out to dinner like Clark had wanted. 

There had always been rumors about their relationship and those rumors followed them to Metropolis when Clark started college. But Lex was able to keep most of the vicious stuff out of the papers and he and Clark were always careful when they appeared in public. Well, he was. Lately Clark had been unpredictable with his PDAs, kissing Lex in a movie theater, hugging him when Lex picked him up after class, playing footsie underneath the table at their favorite restaurant. 

So, while it was true Lex didn't want to deal with the heightened media attention his latest coup was garnering, he also wasn't willing to risk Clark outing them before he was ready. 

Besides, he thought, looking down at Clark as he slowly drifted awake, spending the evening in bed was always more fun than going out. 

"Hey beautiful. Awake?" 

"Barely," Clark mumbled. He rolled onto his back and tucked one hand under his head. "What time is it?" 

Lex propped himself up on his elbow and looked over Clark at the digital alarm clock on the nightstand. "Almost ten." 

"I gotta get up and study," Clark said, moving to get out of bed. 

"No. Just lay here with me a few minutes." 

"That's what you said three hours ago," Clark grinned. 

"And look how well that turned out." He leaned in and gave Clark a playful peck on the nose. 

Clark relaxed and allowed Lex to pepper his shoulders and chest with kisses. Yeah, this definitely beat studying for finals. 

"I was thinking we should throw a party," Lex said, talking as much to himself as he was to Clark. 

"Why?" 

Lex eyed him skeptically. "Your twenty first birthday of course." 

"That's over a month away. Don't you think you're a bit early?" Clark pulled Lex down for more neck nuzzling. 

"No I don't. I haven't been able to give you a proper birthday celebration until now. I want to go all out." 

"You don't have to do that. We can just go to dinner or something." 

"Nonsense. We'll have a huge blow out right here in the penthouse." Lex pulled away so he could look at Clark. 

"No. Let's not. I don't want a whole bunch of people here." After a pause, he said, softly, "Besides, this isn't my place." 

Lex didn't hear the last line. He was in full CEO mode as he planned. "You're right. We don't want all of Met U invading our private space. Besides, it'd be too easy for someone to sneak in a reporter or spy." 

"Gee, paranoid much, Lex?" 

"Shh. I'm thinking." He grinned and kissed Clark on the nose. "What about that new club on the strip? We could rent out that place." 

"Twilight." 

"Yeah. Twilight. Dancing and drinking until dawn." 

"Really Lex. Dinner is fine." Clark's voice was a little pleading. 

Lex still didn't hear. "We could hire out a restaurant. What about Varlarmo's? You love it there. It's low key. Great food. Big enough for a party. Small enough to keep things under control." 

Clark shifted his body away from Lex, turning onto his side so that he was facing the wall. His eyes landed on the picture Lex kept on the nightstand next to the clock. Their arms around each other's shoulder, Clark, in a white t-shirt that showed off his tan, and Lex, in sunglasses and a Metropolis Marlins baseball cap, smiled happily at the camera. The picture had been taken at a Fourth of July picnic, the summer before Clark's senior year, just after he and Lex started dating. Lex had cut Lana and Chloe out of the picture, saying that no one mattered but him and Clark. He stared at the picture and thought about how little had changed. "No, Lex," he said simply, but firmly. 

"Clark. What's wrong?" 

"I just don't want a party." 

Lex leaned over to see Clark's face. "We don't have to have a party. Can you at least me tell why, though?" 

"I don't want to make people uncomfortable." He wasn't lying if it was half true. 

"With us? Your friends don't strike me as the bigoted type, Clark. Besides, no one knows we're a couple. I'll just be the cool best friend throwing you the best 21st birthday party Metropolis has ever seen. Well, at least since my own," Lex grinned. 

Clark resisted the charm. "That's not what I meant." 

"I can't read your mind Clark." Lex's patience was beginning to wane. 

"People might feel uncomfortable if you make a big scene, if you do something too...extravagant." 

"If I spend too much money," Lex translated. 

"Well. Yeah." 

Lex forced Clark back onto his back so he could look him in the eye. "Clark, we don't have to apologize for having money." 

"I don't have money. You have money. I have a rich _best friend_." 

Lex took his hands off Clark. "What's that supposed to mean?" 

"Nothing." Clark turned back to the wall. 

"That was clearly something." He was talking to the back of Clark's head now. 

Clark turned back to Lex and asked pointedly, "Who's Dennis Ramirez?" 

Lex got out of the bed and looked for his clothes. 

"What are you doing?" Clark asked. 

"Getting dressed." 

"Why?" 

"I'd rather not have this conversation naked." 

"So Dennis is something we should discuss?" 

"No. But apparently we are going to discuss him anyway. That discussion will lead to an argument. And if I'm going to fight with you, I'd rather not do it with my dick hanging out." 

Clark winced at Lex's words. Lex was never vulgar. Even his dirty talk wasn't vulgar. Only Lex could say, "Suck my cock" and make it sound like appropriate conversation for an elegant cocktail party. 

Clark got up to find his clothes, too. 

They moved around the room in silence, Clark pulling on his plaid boxers and Met U t-shirt, while Lex found his slacks and socks. After he put them on, Lex stalked to the bar in the living room and began to pour himself a drink. 

"Getting drunk isn't going to help," Clark said from behind him. 

"This is the night for asinine conversations, isn't it?" 

"You haven't answered my question, Lex. Who is Dennis Ramirez?" 

"Clark, I've told you. My past isn't nearly as criminal or decadent as the Daily Planet or the Inquisitor would have you believe." He paused and poured another drink. "But neither is it squeaky clean. I've done quite a few things I wish I could undo. Giving you the play by play of my misspent adolescence isn't going to change my past. What's important is that all of that is _past_. It has nothing to do with you and me." Lex moved across the room as he was talking to close the space between Clark and himself. When he'd finished, he reached out to Clark. 

Clark moved to avoid his touch. "How `past' is it when it shows up on the steps of Griffin Hall waiting for me after English?" 

"Dennis was on campus?" 

"So you do know who he is?" 

"Of course I do Clark. Don't be childish." 

"Don't patronize me." 

"I suppose you talked to Dennis," Lex said with a sigh. 

"He really didn't give me a choice. He followed me to the quad, then to the union. I ignored him until he started yelling `Luthor's whore.'" 

"Clark---" Lex reached out to Clark again. 

"Is that what I am, Lex? A rent boy?" 

Lex sighed again. "Do you even have to ask?" 

"That's what you say when we both know you're lying." 

"I don't know what he told you..." 

"He told me you used him and then you threw him away. He was a student just like me. From a small town, just like me." Clark had been avoiding Lex's eyes, but now looked up. "A secret just like me." 

"Clark, you know you're different." Lex stepped closer to Clark, invading his personal space without touching. 

"Why? How do I know? Because I was a challenge? Because I made you wait for it? What does that get me? A few extra months? A fancy birthday party?" Clark's anger and hurt grew with each question he threw at Lex. 

Lex stepped back and paused before answering. "Clark. I'm trying very hard to be patient here. Clearly you're upset. But insulting me and how I feel about you is not going to help." 

"How do you feel about me?" Clark challenged. 

Lex blinked. Then blinked again. He was surprised to find himself here, in _this_ situation, having to answer _that_ question. Since he and Clark became involved, Lex had done his best not to define their relationship. It was his protection against the inevitable. His relationship with Clark was...good. But "good" was not something Luthors did well and he had trouble believing it would last, no matter how much he might want it. He was certain that he loved Clark and believed that Clark knew this. Though the lack of declaration, public or otherwise, was a sticking point in their relationship, Clark seemed to know how Lex felt, and never pushed for more. Lex was grateful for that. 

But of course that wouldn't be enough for Clark. Lex felt foolish to have not seen this conversation coming. "You know how I feel," he said quietly, rubbing his hand over the back of his head. 

"Tell me." Clark refused to back down. 

"I care deeply for you, Clark," Lex replied quietly, sincerely. 

Without a word, Clark stalked past Lex. 

"Where are you going?" Lex demanded, following him into the bedroom. 

"I have finals to study for." Clark refused to look at Lex or offer any more of an explanation. He gathered his clothes from the floor where they had been tossed earlier. 

"I thought you were going to study here." It wasn't what Lex wanted to say. 

"I can't be here right now." 

"Clark. Don't you think you're overreacting?" 

Clark dressed in silence. 

"You're not speaking to me?" Lex said incredulously. Clark responded with a glare. "This is just fucking great. How many times have we talked about this? You have to ignore what people say and write about me. They're trying to get to me through you. They know we're close and they'll harass you because they know it harasses me. Dennis is just trying to get back at me because I was an ass with him. But it has nothing to do with us. You know that." 

By now Clark had all his clothes on and was getting his backpack. "The problem is what I don't know, Lex." 

Clark grabbed his backpack and left without another word. Lex tried not to think about what it meant that Clark had left his car keys (or, rather, the keys to the red Ferrari Lex let Clark drive because he loved it so much) on the table. He knew he should run after Clark, knew he should apologize, though he wasn't quite sure exactly what he should be sorry for. But all he could see was the inevitability of that shut door. He threw a scotch-filled glass at the pain and sank to the floor. 

* * *

Five weeks had passed since he and Lex had fought. He'd refused all of Lex's phone calls and retreated to the farm to be safe from visits. Clark was sure Lex wouldn't come there unless he was sure he was welcome. By the end of the first week he was disappointed to find out he was right. At the end of the second week he'd actually given in and called Lex, only to find that he'd gone out of town. He spent the next three weeks despondent over his self-inflicted misery, and sure that the fight couldn't have been avoided any longer. 

But, now he didn't know what to do. He'd had so many fantasies about what spending his twenty-first birthday with Lex would be like that it seemed impossible to have it now without him. He talked his parents out of giving him a party and resisted Pete's strip club plans. After a special birthday carrot cake with his parents, he went for an aimless walk and was unsurprised to find himself at the _their_ bridge. He wandered towards the river, then slumped down on the grassy bank, behind a row of sturdy evergreen bushes that shielded him from the road. If he was going to spend his birthday crying about lost love, he would rather the whole world didn't see. 

He wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting there before he heard the distinctive Porsche engine. He had taken off his shoes and socks and was skipping rocks off the water when he heard Lex's footsteps approaching. He studiously took no notice of the other man's presence until Lex was seated comfortably next to him 

"Hey." Clark spoke first. 

"Hey." Lex smiled a little. 

"I didn't expect to see you here." 

"Where else would I be on your 21st birthday?" Lex asked matter-of-factly. 

Clark looked at him, taking in the comment, deciding. "How did you know I'd be here?" 

"I didn't. I stopped by the farm." Lex smiled again, this time mischievously. "I actually had a good talk with your dad." 

Clark grinned at him. 

"Seriously," Lex laughed. 

They were silent for few moments, feeling the distance between them. It had been years since they had been so close and, yet...not. 

"I missed you, Clark," Lex said finally. 

"I'm sorry I walked out like that." 

"You were right. I shouldn't have been so dismissive." 

"I didn't say I was wrong. I just should have handled it better." 

"Dennis was an undergraduate in one of the chem lab sections I ran," Lex began. He paused only a moment before continuing. "He was exactly the kind of person my dad would have hated finding in my bed and that made him attractive to me. After I got the desired reaction from the old man I dumped Dennis. No warning, no explanation. I just left him." 

"Is this the kind of thing you did often?" Clark asked, concentrating on the small waves lapping against the river's bank. 

"Often enough." 

"Why didn't you tell me?" 

Lex looked away, and then back to Clark. "Because I'm ashamed. Ever since you pulled me out of this river I see myself through your eyes. I like what I see there. I don't like to remember that I wasn't always that person." 

"Dennis wasn't the first." Clark shifted so that he was facing Lex. He rubbed Lex's knee absently. "He wasn't the first to call me names." 

Lex waited for him to continue. 

"People warn me away from you constantly." 

"I'm sorry to say that's never going to change," Lex replied honestly. 

"It's just frustrating. With everything I can do, I don't have any defense against being called Luthor's whore." 

"Do you want me to defend you?" 

"You already spend tons of money shielding me." 

"That's not what I meant." 

Clark was silent. Then, "What did you and my dad talk about?" 

Lex relaxed a bit. Talking about Jonathan was a good sign. "You. My intentions." 

"Did he use those words?" Clark laughed and moved closer to Lex. 

"Pretty much. He's not a subtle fellow, that Jonathan Kent." 

"What did you tell him?" 

"I told him that you were the truest thing in my life." He closed the remaining space between them and tilted Clark's head up to look directly at him. "I also told him that I'm hopelessly in love with you and that I was a fool for never telling you." 

"You were a _damned_ fool for never telling me." Clark couldn't hide the big goofy grin. 

"Jonathan's words exactly." He brushed Clark's hair away from his eyes and they sat in silence again, this time feeling like they'd never been apart, but also feeling like it was their first time together. Five weeks was a long time, and each could feel the heat rising in the slight distance between their bodies. 

Finally, Clark spoke. "What are your intentions?" he asked. 

"That's easy," Lex replied. "I intend to love you the best I can until I get it right. And when I get it right, I intend to invent new ways of loving you." 

"Do any of those ways involve kissing?" 

"One or two of them." 

"Then why don't we start there and work on the rest later." 

Lex grinned seductively. "I think I can manage that." 

When his lips met Clark's, Lex felt as if he was finally coming up for air, the same as he had felt six years ago in this very spot. He parted Clark's lips with his thrusting tongue, and explored, remembered. When he sucked Clark's tongue into his own mouth, Clark pulled him into a passionate embrace. Lex slid his hand across Clark's chest, down his stomach, and gripped the throbbing erection through the cotton khakis. He continued sucking and licking, knowing it would drive Clark over the edge. 

Finally Clark broke the kiss. "We need to stop before we get carried away." He reluctantly pulled himself away from Lex. 

Lex pulled Clark close again and nibbled on his ear in response. 

"We're _outside_ , Lex." 

"We've never done it outside," Lex said playfully, using the only words Clark had had for sex, until Lex taught him better ones. He ignored Clark's struggle to get away, though they both knew he wasn't putting up much of a fight. 

"Someone might see us," Clark complained, though his tone belied his words. 

"We're hidden from the road," he moaned into Clark's ear as he shoved him down onto the grass and straddled him, elbows holding Clark's torso in position while Lex's hands roamed through his hair, fingers gentle at first, then massaging, scratching, re-claiming their ownership. 

"Someone might _hear_ us," Clark managed to gasp. 

"Then you'd better come quietly. Now quit complaining." 

Lex kissed Clark again, this time lazily teasing his tongue along Clark's lips. He moaned loudly as Clark bit his bottom lip and tugged fiercely at his hips. 

Clark pushed up against Lex, swirling his hips around until their erections were rubbing together. Then he increased his speed, hunting for the right rhythm, needing this so much despite his earlier protests. Layers of cotton and linen and silk separated them, adding to the mix of sensations, heightening the sense of urgency. The last time they had done this, their actual first time, had had a similar desperation to it, a similar promise of a something beginning. And then, too, they had been fully clothed. 

Lex grinned into Clark's mouth and matched his rhythm. He lifted his body a fraction, just enough to reach between them with the hand not snaking its way through dark curls and rubbed Clark's khaki-covered cock with the heel of his hand, increasing the pressure as Clark's hips lifted off the ground to force the needed friction. When Clark broke their kiss to focus all his attention on moving against Lex's eager palm, Lex ducked his head to nip, then lick soothingly, then nip again at Clark's neck, in that wonderful space between neck and shoulder where all his nerves seemed to be too close to the surface, hyper-sensitive and completely linked to his groin. 

"Fuck, Lex. That feels...I...." 

"Missed you....wanted you..." 

"I can't wait...Please. More." 

Head back, throat exposed, thrusting his hips, offering his cock - Clark's mind could process no more than these essentials. He had a vague idea that he should help Lex out too, but even that half-thought was erased when Lex took what was offered. 

"You're going to kill me," Clark groaned in one of the few seconds when Lex came up for air. Sometimes, in lucid moments after sex, he thought Lex was really the one with the power to survive without oxygen. 

Lex smiled down at him. "But what a happy death." He moved his hand and shifted his weight back on top of Clark. He moved against Clark until their cocks were aligned once more. "Come for me," he whispered in Clark's ear, "come for me, now". 

Clark needed no more. Those words always put him over the edge. He pulled Lex down for a rough kiss, rubbing against him frantically. 

As Clark went stiff and groaned into his mouth, Lex gave one final thrust and took deep pleasure in his lover quivering beneath him. 

He kissed Clark softly, slowly, tenderly to recovery. The world around them reappeared, the still peaceful river the only witness to their reunion. 

"Are you okay?" Lex asked with a smirk. 

Clark was too sated to call Lex on his cockiness. "Five weeks is too long to be away from you." 

"I promise it'll never happen again." 

"You haven't--" Clark began. 

Lex stopped Clark's hand as it slid between his legs. "Don't worry. We have plenty of time to catch up later. Consider this part one of your birthday present." He kissed Clark softly, all the earlier hunger and need replaced now with tenderness. 

"I love you," Clark said. 

"I love you, too." 

"Can we make this our make-up ritual?" Clark asked, holding Lex tight. 

"Are you planning on many more fights?" 

"You obviously haven't been in a relationship with you." 

"If you keep that up, you won't get to see part two of your present." 

"There's more? Something other than riverside frottage?" 

"You'll see." 

* * *

Lex and Martha walked into the tastefully decorated, small French restaurant. A pianist played jazz softly in the background. The crowd was decidedly upscale. They waited patiently for the hostess while Clark and Jonathan parked the Kent car. 

"This is beautiful, Lex. And so intimate. I hope Jonathan and I aren't intruding," Martha said, taking everything in. 

"Of course not, Martha. I'm always happy to include you in our plans. Besides," he whispered conspiratorially, "Clark wouldn't have let me take him here if you didn't agree to come. This way I can spoil my boyfriend _and_ impress the in-laws." 

Martha couldn't tell if he was kidding or not. Then he winked. She laughed. "Well, as long as Jonathan can get a healthy serving of red meat, consider it a job well done." She squeezed his arm in encouragement. 

Just then Clark and Jonathan hurried in behind them, looking worried. 

"Maybe we should go out the back," Jonathan said without explanation. 

"Why?" Lex asked. 

"There were photographers out there. This won't look good in the papers tomorrow," Jonathan answered. 

"Dad's right Lex. This isn't a 'best friend' kind of place. And with my parents here..." Clark said, looking around for a discreet exit. 

"If it's all the same to everyone else, I'd like to stay." Lex said simply. 

The hostess came up just then. "Mr. Luthor. Your table is ready." After they were seated, she asked, "Is there anything else I can do for you?" 

"Actually," Lex said, "we're here to celebrate Clark's birthday." As he said his name, Lex took Clark's hand in his and looked lovingly into his eyes as he spoke to the hostess. "So if the chef would suggest something special for dessert..." 

"I'm sure that's possible," the hostess said cheerily. Turning to Clark, "Happy Birthday." 

Jonathan looked very satisfied, the lurking reporters completely forgotten. 

Lex kissed Clark's stunned face before turning his attention to the menu. 

Martha leaned over to Lex and whispered, "Very impressive, Lex. Very impressive indeed." 

**FIN**


End file.
